Family home with fine heritage
When Paul and Brenda Schrader first saw the heritage house at 13 Victoria St, Hawera it was the beginning of a long renovation and restoration journey. That work brought the house back to its former glory and transformed it into a modern family home.
The Schraders have meticulously ensured that every aspect of their house renovation is in keeping with the original home and its 1914 era. Their attention to detail has been astounding.
They have successfully transformed their character home into a modern, liveable, open-style family home without losing its heritage charm. In fact, they have enhanced and successfully lifted it to another level.
Every fitting has been recycled, sourced or made to exactly match the originals. The Schraders scouted around and even imported items from England to ensure every feature was accurate to the period.
The house hosts a multitude of rimu features and exposed beams. When the Schraders moved in, all the exposed timber was shellacked in a dark brown colour. Paul hand-stripped every piece of visible timber to restore it to its former glory.
Prior to World War II, the house was owned by Doctor Fitzgerald, a well-known Hawera identity. The front room was originally his consulting room, which the Schraders restored to how they feel it would have once been. What was once the formal entrance has been transformed with similar seating to the consultation room as a nod of respect to the house’s previous history. New leadlight windows were locally made in a style to match the original remaining windows and bespoke bevelled glass was used for the lounge doors.
‘‘Like any bespoke item, it was expensive; but we felt that those touches were worthwhile,’’ says Paul. ‘‘We also had duplicates made of the original filigree patterned wood panels above the doorways to use throughout the house.
‘‘We spent over 20 years searching nearly every second-hand shop and building demolition firm around the country for any items that were suitable for the renovation.’’ Plasterboard has been laid over the internal wall match linings; so every wall is now double-lined. But this also meant the Schraders had to pack the rimu door surrounds out to the same thickness.
‘‘We went to an awful lot of trouble sourcing the rimu timber to match,’’ Paul says. ‘‘If we’d used a different type of rimu, it would have really stood out.’’
Many of the windows have been doubleglazed and fitted with draught excluders. With under-floor insulation, this has made the house a lovely cosy haven.
The original lounge fireplace has been replaced by a heritage-styled modern gas fire. Its wooden surround and mantelpiece was sourced from a 1904 Dannevirke home. The lounge features a heritage English-styled forest-green carpet with decorative patterns.
The original outside washhouse was renovated into a large country-style kitchen.
It was built in a style that was sympathetic to the era, but still features all of the modern conveniences needed in a family kitchen.
Soft butter hues have been used for the tongue-and-groove panelling and tiles; this is offset by lustrous forest green accents. The kitchen drawers are made from solid pine. Large windows overlook the immaculately manicured gardens.
‘‘The timber used in the kitchen needed to be stacked and dried for three years before it could be worked,’’ Paul points out. ‘‘It’s never been a case of thinking ‘This is what we’re going to do next week, and then go and do it’. We’ve had to think it out, and that takes time.
‘‘The morning sun floods into the kitchen, making the window seat a lovely place to relax and have a cuppa. The seat is a replica of the originals found upstairs. During winter, we use the kitchen’s wood stove which pokes out an awful amount of heat.’’
The downstairs bathroom is built in what was originally the kitchen scullery. The downstairs bedroom and separate bathroom are ideal for guests or visiting family.
Paul machined timber from the ceiling of an Otakeho house into tongue-and-groove wall panelling for the staircase. The new stipple work on the staircase pillars demonstrates the attention to detail that the Schraders have built into their house.
‘‘Our daughter’s bedroom is where our granddaughters now stay when they visit, and Brenda tells them that it’s the ‘Princess’s Bedroom’. They just love it. We called the boy’s bedroom the ‘Boy’s Dormitory’. It has a large curved window overlooking the front garden.’’
The ‘Dormitory’ looks down onto the garden fountain, the surrounding town and even out over eastern Taranaki back-country to the central plateau mountains.
The master bedroom features a plethora of wooden features and a masterfully designed angled ceiling. It also has an ensuite and dressing room.
All of the brass-coated exposed plumbing piping has been hand-made and every door handle was sent away to be newly brasscoated. Every hinge is made from stainless steel. Copper spouting has been used on the roof, which has been newly covered in slategrey bitumen tiles.
‘‘All of the brass-over-porcelain light switches have handmade circular rimu mounting blocks,’’ says Paul. ‘‘We even retained an original wall-mounted steel cistern with a chain flush.’’
The bathroom floor has a drain outlet to ensure the room will never flood. The entire floor has been fibreglassed beneath the parquet covering and slightly up the walls as an added anti-flood feature. Two period-style pedestal wash basins have been installed in the bathroom and one of the bevelled mirrors has been specifically shaped to match the sloping ceiling-line.
‘‘The brass plates surrounding the bathroom electrical switches were all handmade,’’ says Paul. ‘‘We didn’t have lasercutting or water- jetting then. I cut them out and filed them by hand.’’
There is a heat pump on the second storey that is predominately used to cool the house. During winter, the Schraders open all the downstairs doors and the heat from the wood stove naturally heats upstairs, too.
‘‘It’s been great to have a home that’s large enough for extended family to visit or when the kids have had their friends over. Many of the rooms open up to the garden and patios which is ideal for entertaining,’’ Paul says.
The property is conveniently located only a stone’s throw away from two primary schools and an intermediate school; and only 500 metres from Hawera’s CBD.
The low-maintenance garden is immaculate. The aged red-brick hard landscaping is softened and contrasted by established trees, shrubs, and box hedges.
Once the Schrader’s children reached their teen years they would often bring friends around and sit out in the courtyard around a brazier. Paul celebrated his 50th birthday in the garden where there was ample space to put a marquee up on the lawn.
‘‘Brenda and I are attention-to-detail people,’’ he says. ‘‘We’ve loved the challenge of restoring and modernising this house. It’s been a 30-year labour of love. I’m confident that whoever buys this house will be just as happy as we’ve been. They’ll get many years of pleasure from it.’’ www.taranakidailynews.co.nz